I picked this up on kind of randomly and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. The premise of the wizard police officer could be hard to pull off but the author does so with a light touch and humor. The detailed descriptions of London make it almost another character to enjoy. The narrator is a real find, with a great main character voice. He handles both women and an impressively wide range of accents well. He is so good I have now listened to the whole series. There are not many narrators that can hold my attention that long and it is always an unexpected delight to find one. I look forward to more from the author and the narrator.

I bought this book when it went on sale, and I am so happy that I did! It was so much better than I was expecting it to be. The characters are amazingly well done, each one is well thought out and unique. I couldn't pick a favorite character if you asked me to, they are all so great. The writing is so funny at times and delightfully creepy at others. The plot is great, good and twisty and convincingly constructed. It's the first book in the series and I'll definitely be getting more of them. I've been recommending this book to all my friends.

As an urban fantasy, it seems to follow a trend I've noticed in other British urban fantasy books that I've noticed. There's a conflict which carries the plot through the book, but there are plenty of other large and small issues which sometimes affect the plot and sometimes just illustrate either the background (like the vampire incident) or sometimes just illuminate the characters themselves. It reminds me a bit of watching a TV show over a season, where sometimes the episodes are more or less stand alone and sometimes they build toward the season finale conflict. I personally really enjoy this method of story-telling. Other similar books I've enjoyed with this writing style are Daniel O'Malley's "The Rook" (another really excellent book), Jodi Taylor's "Just One Damn Thing After another" (hilarious and excellent) or Claire North's "The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August" (you guessed it: excellent!).

I had to dock the narrator one star because of his sometimes very breathy performance. He is so great and delivers all the lines with exactly the right inflections and panache that I can't hold it too much against him, but if you're inclined to be bothered by noisy breathing at times, then this might get to you a bit.

A very fun and fast paced listen! If you like paranormal police dramas in the vein of Dresden or the good English Midsomer Murders/Agatha Christie/Sherlock Holmes, then this book is for you. The narrator is the BEST I've heard yet with all British dialects as well as believable women's voices. A very unique story line using the Rivers of London as a base. I highly recommend this series!

When I first started listening to this first Peter Grant book, I was knocked breathless. Sounds hokey I know, but discovering a truly well -written, engaging book that stretches into a series is like knocking back a shot of fine, honest Russian vodka. Peter Grant always leaves you breathless and wanting more. Maybe that's why it is impossible to contact Aaronovitch. His readers would be proverbially battering down his door wanting to know when the next installment was due out. That's how real a character Aaronovitch has made Police Constable Peter Grant, the 21st century London magician's apprentice whose job it is to investigate supernatural misdeeds in and around that great metropolis, under the tutelage of the sole surviving member of the Metropolitan Police's supernatural division, Inspector Thomas Nightingale. I cannot imagine reading a printed version of this series because Kobna Holdbrook-Smith's narration is the spark that brings this magic-filled London of Aaronovitch's to life. Sit back and enjoy this gem that begins a "give me more!" series. And just in time for the next installment. Trust me when I say that when you've finished the series, it will keep calling you back, and when the siren call comes, everything you try to listen to will be utterly boring until you answer the call and have another listen to a Peter Grant book. This is my third go around. I'll be ready when the next one is released in June, 2016.